Monday, July 09, 2007

A PS to my last post

Since no one else has posted today, and I have a lot to say about the comments on my last post, I'm adding a PS to it.

I agree with Alvina and Meghan that sometimes "I think I can" is a good thing to tell yourself.....

I loved Meghan's "of course" -- of course there are times when you can't do it -- but that isn't at all obvious to some of us: people like me who are over-optimistic and ever-hopeful, and kids, too. When adults in charge of children say believing you can do it and persistence are all that's needed and they AREN'T, the kids struggling feel even worse -- not only are they dumb but lazy (or whatever). Books with simplistic messages do make it easy for adults to apply the message even when it isn't helpful.

This may be way too much to be putting on one little book! What I probably should do is write a post on my personal blog about what's been going on in yoga class and the difference between letting go and giving up. But everyone's comments really made me think and I wanted to talk about it.

3 comments:

I'm right there with you, Libby--over-optimistic, ever-hopeful. It's crushing to discover that some things can't be overcome or achieved by effort, determination, even skill. But it's not in me to stop trying. I'll be tugged backward through death's door saying, "I think I can, I think I can..."

There may be something comforting in resignation, letting go, giving up, but I haven't found it.

I sometimes wonder if I'm a Mr. Micawber (David Cooperfield), pathetic and comical.

Libby, your original post reminded me of Little Miss Sunshine, which I just finally watched on DVD last week. The dad (Greg Kinnear) keeps assuring Olive that she can't lose the beauty contest because she's determined and wants it more than anyone else, etc. I just wanted to slap him.

I don't abhor The Little Engine That Could, assuming reading that book is only a small part of a huge reading experience. As a "rule of life," though, it leaves a lot to be desired.

This leads me to another movie: The Castle. It demonstrates what might be a "next step" in the I-think-I-can thought process, and that is viewing your success, whatever it may or may not be, as the greatest thing in the world.

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